One Day Among Others
by Fiery Thistle
Summary: After a strange thing occurs in Esthar, Rinoa and Quistis are sent in to investigate. What they discover and the aftermath of it will change their lives and others along with it. ~Chapter 2 UP~
1. Starting Out

One Day Among Others 

Disclaimer: so annoying… anything copyrighted doesn't belong to me. now repeat that 100x.

Author's note: it's gonna be a series… there will be lemon(s) later on… gotta thank Astraea for her inspirational stories and Ennui for emailing back and reviewing the non-NC-17 parts lol… anyways, I tried writing in past tense but my present tense habit kicks in, so don't flame me over tenses. Yeah and mean thoughts.

                  "Horrid little beast." A voice whispers. You pretend to be normal, but I know you are not. 

                 "What the hell are you talking about?" Another voice asks. 

                 "Shh. It might hear you Lorenzo." 

                 "For Hyne's sake, what are you talking about Maxwell?" Has he gone mad? 

                 The man named Maxwell grunts. "Don't let it hear names, fool." The idiocy of Lorenzo! 

                 "Maxwell, what's going on? It's just a monster. It won't understand human language."

                 "Shut up." The succinct words end with quiet. I can finally hear myself think. 

                 Maxwell shuffles around, scribbling on a clipboard. "Fascinating," he mutters to himself. "Absolutely mesmerizing."

                 Lorenzo peers over Maxwell's shoulder, his drooping chin jutting out sharply. "Something's happening," he tells himself. "Maxwell is acting strange, suspicious." He looks into the cage and then shrugs. "Good Hyne, what is it doing?!" Is it doing what I think it's doing? 

                 Excited, Maxwell presses his face against the metal bars and yanks it back five seconds later, yelling in pain. Lorenzo pulls him toward him and begins to scream from shock. Maxwell's eyeballs are lying against his sallow cheeks, the connecting tissue tiny threads suspended from the eye sockets. 

                 Maxwell yells over and over, clutching at his now loose eyeballs, blood everywhere. "The pain!" He says it repeatedly, jerking his head back and forth. 

                 Sickened, Lorenzo turns around and places his fingers in his ears, shuddering. "Calm yourself Maxwell!" He says over his colleague's yelling. 

                 "Kill it! Lorenzo, kill it!" Maxwell screeches as he rolls on the floor. Hurry, you fool, kill the damn thing! 

                 "Why? It's acting strangely and we need it alive to study it!" Lorenzo protests, surprised. What's wrong with him? 

                 Maxwell howls like a wolf. "Kill the beast! I regret ever seeing it! Damn the Blitz, damn! Lorenzo- what are you waiting for? Kill it!" He pounds the floor. "I can't see anymore, cast Death on it, you rigid fool!" Damn you, Lorenzo, kill the fucking thing! 

                 Fumbling, Lorenzo hurries over to the cage and tries to cast, to find out he's been silenced. "Good Hyne! I've been silenced Maxwell! What the hell is going on?" He then lets out a shrill scream when he sees the dark figure of Death and its blade hovering in front of him. "Maxwe-" His scream is cut off as a blade whisks in the air and then red splashes forth. The tiny room becomes silent except for the occasional whimpering of a blinded man.

                 ***

                 "A scientist was found murdered and another blabbering gibberish in Esthar? And the local authorities have not placed him under surveillance in a hospital? They left him alone in the building?" Quistis asks, skeptically. Of all places, Esthar? That high-and-mighty city, a mystery still unsolved? This whole thing is suspicious. 

                 Cid nervously clears his throat. "Yes. We believe dark forces are involved and have decided to send a group of elite SeeDs to examine the scene. Squall, Zell, Irvine and Selphie have already gone off on a mission in Dollet. We have decided to send them in as Team Beta, if it will be needed. You will be the leader of Team Alpha, with Rinoa. Debrief events each night with Xu. She will later provide you with the necessaries." 

                 Rinoa smiles at her teammate. "I guess we're going to have to check out the place. Don't you think it's gonna be hard to talk to a crazy guy?" What if he tries to attack us? 

                 Quistis nods calmly, pretending. "Maybe he's seen something strange."

                 "I was hoping you would," Cid answers unprofessionally. Please? 

                 "Sure. I'd love to show Squall how I can handle a mission," Rinoa answers happily while playing with her black hair.

                 Shrugging, Quistis nods. "This 'mad' scientist, is he still in there?" 

                 "He refuses to move. Seeing as this may be a growing threat to the world, I've personally decided to send in SeeD." Cid responds tensely.

                 "Alright then. When do we leave?" the blonde-haired woman asks.

                 "Tomorrow at 0900 hours. There will be a vehicle to take you and Rinoa to the outskirts of Esthar. Lonely place, but the monsters are rare. I take it you both fully understand your mission's requirements?" Cid asks.

                 Both Quistis and Rinoa nod. 

                 "Excellent, you two are dismissed."

Author's Note: Review!


	2. A Little Meeting

One Day Among Others 

**Chapter 2**

Disclaimer: so annoying… anything copyrighted doesn't belong to me. now repeat that 100x.

Author's note: what did ya think of the first chapter? Rinoa-bashing, but not too viciously. Watch her round out later on and develop into a down-to-earth girl who's sweet but doesn't overdo the sugar.

                  "So Quisty, what do you think of our mission? It's gonna be easy, right?" Rinoa asks in her happy voice. We'll probably go home tomorrow. Quistis sighs. "Are you sleepy? Oh no! I forgot to ask Cid- where are we going to stay for the night? We can't sleep on another floor, what if there are ghos-" 

                 "Calm yourself," Quistis grunts. She asks too many questions! "Xu has already made arrangements. We will stay in a hotel, separate suites across the hallway from each other. You will be fine?" She asks. Knowing her, she'll come knocking at my door and ask to sleep in my room because she's scared. 

                 Nodding, Rinoa walks on. "Ok. That's good. Ooh, here we are. Ick, that building looks so _eerie_."

                 A two-story gray building stands by itself, surrounded by small groves of maple trees. The windows look sunk-in and the doors seem as if their hinges are stuck. All is silent.

                 "Get out your Shooting Star, we may encounter monsters." Quistis commands and opens the door. Thank Hyne she got over her fear of battling. 

                 Rinoa takes out her weapon. "Ya know Quisty, what if that mad scientist guy jumps us? I mean we're just girls and everything." 

                 Quistis mentally smacks herself for accepting a mission with only Rinoa as accompaniment. "_Rinny_, we are trained elite SeeD and teenagers. We both have our weapons out and there is no chance a deranged man can try to attack us." She says, doing her best to sound calm. 

                 They walk inside. The hallways still show signs of recent activity with footprints and dropped reports. Three minutes later, they hear some shuffling.

                 "The scientist!" Rinoa screams when Quistis swings open the door that separates the two from the noise inside.

                 The scientist is a sorry sight. His mouse-brown hair is tangled and messy, and gray whiskers dot his chin. Tired, he is lying huddled in a corner, his lab coat blackened and torn. "…unbelievable…" He trails off.

                 "Eww!" Rinoa begins screaming at the sight of bare eye-sockets and is clutching at her head. "Quisty, look!" 

                 Quistis ignores her and bends down towards the man. "Please excuse my um.. colleague… what is your name sir?" Blinded and a pitiable sight. 

The face lifts up and a small smile spreads. "Thank you miss. I haven't received such kindness since the monster blinded me. You are a gentle soul. May Hyne bless you. I am Maxwell, Duane Maxwell and my friend Lorenzo was killed."

                 "Mr. Maxwell, can you explain what happened?" Quistis asks.

                 Rinoa, meanwhile, is staring in shock. Wow, she can keep her cool! 

                 Maxwell nods. "Lorenzo and I were going through the Kashkabald Desert when he chanced upon a lone Cactuar. Mind you, they're not that dangerous unless provoked. This one was a gray color, and most disturbing indeed was the eyes. With precaution, we cast Sleep on it and Floated it back to our lab building. We placed it in a cage and studied it, because of its major differences from its fellow green ones. After one day, disaster struck and the Cactuar used its thorns and blinded me. Amazingly, it felt like two clawed hands but Lorenzo met death. Since then, I have laid in wait for my death, only to be tortured with the agonizing indifference to my condition by shallow reporters."

                 Quistis stands up. "That is quite unusual… a gray Cactuar, you say?"

                 "It was more of a silvery color, and its aura seemed _evil_." Maxwell answers hoarsely. "If Lorenzo were still alive, he could tell you more because he was exclaiming the Cactuar was doing something completely shocking. I swear though, it seems as if the Cactuar was hissing…"

                 "A talking Cactuar?" Rinoa bursts out. I don't get it. 

                 Quistis nods slowly. "Did you hear anything it said?"

                 "Time compression- it was muttering something about time compression." Maxwell utters.

                 Both Quistis and Rinoa's eyes widen. _Ultimecia_. They both think at the same time.

                 "Continue, if you may. Did it mention anything else?" Quistis asks again, amazed by this information.             

                 Maxwell clutches at his chest. "..agh.. something about '…I will strike… unexpected is my delight…'" He coughs, then his head falls.

                 Rinoa's breath catches in her throat and she holds her weapon more tightly. "Is he-" I feel sorry for Maxwell. He died so horribly. 

                 "Dead." Quistis quiets then looks at her watch. "A bit early, but we should debrief Xu right away."

                 "Ok. Um Quisty?"

                 "What is it?" Another stupid question, no doubt. 

                 "I… I'm sorry for acting so ditzy before… it's just that I was so happy about getting a mission that I was… like… annoying." Rinoa says, embarrassed. Wonder how Quistis's gonna take it? 

                 Quistis, for the first time, flashes a genuine smile at the waiting black-haired girl. "I suggest we get back to the hotel and then debrief Xu. Don't you feel worried Ultimecia's returning?" I do but is Rinny going to show some bravado? 

                 Rinoa nods. "Really scared. I thought we killed her and all… but to hear she's going to strike again… I think she possessed the Cactuar."

                 "Then we must make it our duty to hunt it down and put it out of its misery tomorrow." Quistis decides. 

                 "Say… do you know what ever happened to Seifer?"

                 Quistis shakes her head. "I never thought about it," she confesses.

                 "Neither did I until now. I wonder where he is, if he's still alive." Rinoa kicks at a dust ball while she speaks.

                 "Maybe we should go look for him too. He might know some important things." 

                 Rinoa agrees. "Yeah, that's true. The only problem is, where can he be?"

                 Quistis taps her chin for a second. "He could be in Esthar, there's a lot of people to mingle in with."

                 "We could try clubbing." Rinoa says weakly, expecting a sarcastic remark.

                 "Good idea Rinoa. The only problem is, we'll have to wear our typical outfits, not a good thing if you're trying to seem normal." Quistis sighs.        

                 "I brought casual clothes. If you have a shirt, I have a skirt you could borrow."

                 "Deal. You know what? I think we'll solve this just fine."

                 "Yep."

Author's Note: I write with only one expectation- reviews. I don't care if it's only one, as long as it's a review.


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